Mayo Clinic Alumni Association History
The Mayo Clinic Alumni Association history starts in 1915, when Harold Foss, M.D., a fellow in surgery, proposed:
“The formation of an association, comprised of members of the Mayo Clinic staff and physicians who, having served at least one year in Rochester, are now practicing in other parts of the country.”
Dr. Foss, along with Egerton Crispin, M.D., Arch Logan, M.D., Robert Mussey, M.D., and Albert Miller, M.D., drafted a constitution that established the Association of Resident and Ex-Resident Physicians of Mayo Clinic. The constitution was approved in 1915.
The mission of the Mayo Clinic Alumni Association was to establish a closer and more definite social and scientific relationship between these individuals and Mayo Clinic.
The first formal meeting of the Mayo Clinic Alumni Association was in September of 1917.
Officers elected included:
- Harold Foss, M.D., President
- Donald Balfour, M.D., Vice President
- W.C. Carroll, M.D., Secretary
- Arthur Sanford, M.D., Treasury
Since that time the association has held its biennial meetings in the autumn of odd numbered years.
In 1935, membership eligibility was expanded to include anyone who became a Mayo Clinic faculty member and anyone who had served at least three years as a fellow in Mayo Graduate School. To learn about membership, visit the Membership page.
Before The Mayo Clinic Alumni Association History
Precursors – Surgeons Club
In the early years of Mayo Clinic, physicians from around the world traveled to Rochester, Minn., to observe the Mayo brothers perform surgery. In 1906 seven of those visiting physicians formed the International Surgeons Club. The group described its purpose:
“Physicians who came here to see the work done at Saint Marys Hospital by the Mayo brothers may be enabled to meet together and discuss the work of the day and other matters of mutual interest.”
Within months, the Surgeons Club had more than 300 members. The Club was given space in the building where the Siebens Building stands today.